The present invention relates generally to the field of communications networks, and more particularly, to methods of providing identification information over communications networks and related devices.
For many educational and other institutions, tracking attendance can be a time-consuming and tedious chore. For example, in a school setting, a teacher may take attendance manually, by asking each student to state “here” when his or her name is called, or by visually scanning the classroom to determine which students are present. The teacher may then write down the information and forward it to the school administration, often by hand. If a student enters the class late, after attendance has been taken, the teacher must take note of that fact, and interrupt teaching to update his or her attendance records.
The consequences of poor attendance recordkeeping can be significant for public schools, administrators, and school districts, among other organizations. For instance, average daily attendance (ADA) may be an important statistic used to determine school funding. Since school funding may be based on ADA figures, schools may lose money every time a student is absent. As such, when poor or inconsistent attendance tracking wrongly indicates that a present student is absent, the school may needlessly lose funding.
Moreover, in light of recent events, safety has become another issue facing educational and other institutions. For example, due to rising crime rates, students may be required to carry identification to even be permitted on school grounds. As such, identifying of students who do not belong in a school or even a particular classroom may be an important step in maintaining student safety.
Another problem that plagues public education systems and other organizations is the lack of funding for resources, such as textbooks. Textbooks may be a fundamental component of current public education systems, and as such, may be required for every student. Often, several books may be assigned to each student for each class. Additional and/or supplemental books may also be required during different portions of the school year, for example, for special projects. In addition, textbooks may be frequently revised by publishers, which may require replacement of entire supplies of books in the school systems in which such books are used. Students may also physically struggle with the problem of transporting textbooks from one class to another, as verified by recent studies illustrating the physical strain being placed on students' backs. Furthermore, the schools themselves may impose limitations on the types of backpacks that students may carry, for example, due to rising crime rates and aforementioned concerns over student safety.